The present invention relates generally to the storage and brewing of beverages, and more particularly to a integrated container and infuser apparatus for storing and brewing teas and other steeped beverages.
In recent years, there has been an evolving interest in the so-called gourmet beverage industry. Consumption of these beverages has increased, along with a demand for the highest quality, and best tasting beverages available. Moreover, the demand has created the desire for a large selection of flavors. The popularity of gourmet beverage shops and cafes have developed the need for the availability of equivalent quality beverages at home. One such gourmet beverage for home consumption is tea and/or herbal tea. To brew the highest quality teas, the highest quality tea leaves must be used which are typically sold as loose, full leaves.
Typical home brewing devices make an entire pot at once for multiple servings. These devices are impractical for the consumer who wants only a single serving. The advent of the tea bag addressed this need for a device to brew a single serving. However, tea bags have several drawbacks such as they use lower quality tea leaves, and the consumer is limited to the flavors and types of teas that are available in the tea bag format. Further, brewing methods affect the quality of the brewed tea. Steeping, or the process of extracting the flavor of tea by soaking the leaves in near-boiling water, has been recognized as the best method for brewing teas using loose, full leaves.
To brew the best quality tea, several tea infusers have been presented so that the highest quality tea leaves and the best brewing method can be used. Conventional tea infusers typically are circularly shaped strainers with a central recessed portion placed within the opening of a drinking container. The recessed portion contains several apertures and extends into the cavity of the drinking container. Loose tea leaves are placed in the central recessed portion over which near boiling fluid, such as water, is poured. As the fluid passes over the leaves and through the apertures into the drinking container, flavor is extracted. Flavor is further extracted from the tea leaves by allowing the near-boiling water to rise to fill the central portion of the infuser. The tea leaves are allowed to steep in the near boiling water for a predetermined amount of time. Once the desired strength of the tea is reached, the leaves and/or the infuser is removed from the drinking container.
Several prior art devices include a serving container such as a cup coupled with an infuser lid to provide a convenient method of brewing a single serving of tea. Such prior art infusers are shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,205 to Melton and U.S Pat. No. 5,947,004 to Huang. However, there has not been a multi-purpose device that stores tea leaves and provides an infuser for brewing when used with an associated drinking container encompassed in a simply assembled, aesthetically pleasing package.
The present invention provides a convenient, aesthetically pleasing, multi-purpose container/beverage infuser that allows a user to store and brew beverages such as tea. The device includes a base container for storing the loose tea leaves prior to brewing. A lid is provided to seal the container so that the tea leaves may be preserved during storage. An infuser is removably attached to the base container. The infuser is shaped so that that it may be inverted over a drinking container and receive a predetermined amount of fresh tea leaves to be steeped. Clips are coupled to the infuser so that the infuser may be retained in the inverted position over drinking containers of various dimensions during the brewing process. A cap is placed on top of the infuser when assembled and is designed to be placed on a stable surface to hold the infuser after use as a drip cap to prevent excess dripping.
In accordance with the first aspect of the present invention, the integrated infusible substrate container and infuser apparatus comprises a container having an interior cavity for holding an infusible substrate prior to infusion and an infuser in removable association with the container. The infuser includes a well portion for receiving the infusible substrate, and further includes a plurality of apertures for permitting infusion of the infusible substrate.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method of using an integrated container and infuser apparatus is provided. In accordance with the method, a user removes the infuser from the container. The user obtains an amount of infusible substrate from the container and places the amount of infusible substrate in the well portion. The user places the infuser within an opening of an associated drinking container and pours water through the infuser to extract flavors from the infusible substrate.